trihard wrote:On a side note, I'm curious if that is your normal setup?

Normal? Well, few would agree it's normal, but yes, it's an espresso bar that adjoins our family rec room. The two-group La Marzocco Strada is for side-by-side coffee comparisons and get-togethers (e.g., 07-15-2011 Friday Espresso Meet-up). Someday I plan to do a walkthru video of the equipment I use for reviews.

trihard wrote:A question, though, is without curtains on the windows your coffee beans are stored in direct sunlight...do you use just use them up so fast that it doesn't matter?

I use short hoppers and fill them at most with 2 days worth of coffee. It looked sunny in the video, but that's because the trees are bare. Come springtime, the foliage will block out all direct sunlight from those windows.

Thank you for taking the time to share this with us.

For those following this series, Phillip and I completed the next installment: Newbie Introduction to Espresso - Grinders. We'll return to diagnostics in a month or so.

Here's the latest installment: Newbie Introduction to Espresso - Taste Diagnosis. We'll return to diagnostics in a month or so (or maybe latte art).

UPDATE: The fifth installment! Newbie Introduction to Espresso - Latte Art.

UPDATE 2: And the sixth installment, Newbie Introduction to Espresso - Consistency.